Justice, Peace, Integrity of Creation

Our brother Francis, of all the great saints, unreservedly embraced Jesus, the Word made flesh. If our great and majestic God could wholly and lovingly become one with the created world through Jesus Christ, how could Francis and his brothers and sisters not do likewise?

Francis believed that Christ and the gospel called him to be one with all people and all Creation. For followers of Francis, this universal and all-inclusive kinship demands resistance to injustice, exploitation and all oppression that mock what God so lovingly expressed through the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus.

As friars minor (lesser brothers) of our beloved Francis, we humbly and tirelessly champion the Cause of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) through prayer and action.

Purpose of the JPIC office for the Province of St. Joseph:

to help facilitate the continual conversion of ourselves and our brothers in the Province as we respond, on all levels of community life and ministry, to our calling to be Franciscan men of justice, peace and reconciliation

to enable and empower ourselves and our brothers to analyze the social reality of North America and the critical justice, peace and integrity of creation issues which impact our lives as fraternity, as church, and as members of a global community, in order to prayerfully discern, develop and facilitate gospel responses to injustice tat will be faithful to our Franciscan charism.

“I repeat forcefully: it is neither a culture of confrontation nor a culture of conflict which builds harmony within and between peoples, but rather a culture of encounter and a culture of dialogue; this is the only way to peace. May the plea for peace rise up and touch the heart of everyone so that they may lay down their weapons and be let themselves be led by the desire for peace.” Pope Francis (9/1/13)

"What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" Micah 6:8